San Francisco 49ers @ Los Angeles Rams
LOS ANGELES - In a battle of NFC West contenders, the San Francisco 49ers (7-1) took down the Los Angeles Rams 23-17 in overtime. After getting out in front, the Rams (3-4) vaunted defense could not keep San Francisco from charging back.
Once in overtime, Justin Fields turned not to CeeDee Lamb or Tyler Boyd, but running back JD McKissic for a deep 60 yard pass. To his credit McKissic went up and got the ball before running the rest of the way into the end zone for the game winning touchdown. The sea of red and gold in the LA stands erupted after the play and the 49ers emerged as clear favorites to take the NFC North.
Once again Justin Fields had over 100 yards rushing and is proving difficult to stop. He's the early front runner for MVP in the 3GML and could be the second player in league history to earn back to back honors.
San Francisco heads into their bye week with a comfortable 3 game lead in the division.
Tennessee Titans @ Houston Texans
HOUSTON - With Tennessee quarterback Ryan Tannehill out with injury, the Houston Texans cruised to a 34-10 victory over their division rivals. Tennessee (4-3) was able to keep things close early but couldn't hang with the excellent Houston running game. The Texans (5-2) had over 200 yards rushing on the day which kept the time of possession strongly in their favor.
The turning point took all of five seconds in the beginning of the 2nd quarter. With the Texans up 6-3, Gardner Minshew found DeVante Parker on a 23 yard touchdown pass to put Houston up 13-3. On the ensuing kickoff, the Texans forced a Dontrell Hillard fumble and turned it into a scoop and score. Before they knew it, Tennessee was down 20-3 and could never catch up with backup quarterback Kyle Allen.
With the win, Houston takes a half game lead over Indianapolis in the AFC South. They will look to keep that advantage next week as they take on the Eagles at home in Thursday Night Football.
Green Bay Packers @ Buffalo Bills
BUFFALO - The Buffalo Bills spoiled GM SD's return to New York with a thrilling 26-24 victory over the Green Bay Packers. SD who brought Buffalo their first (and second) Super Bowl win, had to watch on in frustration as the Bills (4-3) used a Hail Mary and last minute field goal to hold off the visiting Packers.
Green Bay (5-2-1) came out hot with an opening touchdown drive but struggled to stop Josh Allen the rest of the night. In spite of their struggles, Green Bay still found themselves in a tight one and only down 10-7 with one second to go in the second quarter. However, with an arm like Allen's, no throw is too long. The Buffalo QB rolled right on the last play of the half and heaved a 65 yard bomb to Gabe Davis in the back of the end zone, taking the air out of the Packers before half time.
To their credit, Green Bay hung around and actually took a late 24-23 lead. However, Allen was left with too much time and drove down the field to set up what would be the game-winning field goal.
"The wings were great, the game sucked." GM SD said after the game.
Green Bay will stay on the road for the third straight week and head to Detroit to take on the 1-6 Lions.
